The Charge

An exploration of our solar system and beyond.

The Case

Like a lot of History's "megaset" collections, The Universe:
Collector's Set pulls together a sizable package of History DVDs devoted to
a particular theme, which in this case is astronomy. For fans of a specific
topic, it's well worth considering collections like this one, as they usually
contain a wealth of great programming. In that regard, this set is no exception,
but some of the decisions History made in packaging it leave a lot to be
desired. This package of shows, while well-chosen, is not the slam-dunk it could
have been.

The Universe: Collector's Set compiles the two season sets for the
series The Universe into one package. In addition, it also includes all
four discs of a 1999 BBC/A&E series called The Planets and the
separately released special How the Earth Was Made. Here are all the
episodes compiled on all fourteen discs:

Disc One "Secrets of the Sun" "Mars: The
Red Planet" "The End of the Earth: Deep Space Threats to our
Planet" "Jupiter: the Giant Planet"

Disc Two "The Moon" "Spaceship
Earth" "The Inner Planets: Mercury and Venus"

Disc Three "Saturn: Lord of the Rings"
"Alien Galaxies" "Life and Death of a Star"
"The Outer Planets"

Disc Four "The Most Dangerous Place in the
Universe" "Search for ET"

Disc Five "Alien Planets" "Cosmic
Holes" "Mysteries of the Moon" "The Milky
Way"

For astronomy buffs, the meat of the set will be the nine discs that include
both seasons of The Universe. The series is by and large impressive,
mixing good scientific research and interviews with top astronomers and other
scientists with computer reenactments and archival footage and photographs to
explain various astronomical topics. The shows are well-written and organized so
that even complex scientific principles are easy to understand, without
necessarily seeming dumbed-down. If anything, the second season is even more
ambitious, as it covers far more abstract concepts like wormholes and dark
matter that are much harder to explain simply. True, at times the show does
sometimes come off as Astronomy for the Maxim Crowd. The episode on
Jupiter, for instance, explains how the massive planet can "slingshot"
comets and asteroids out of the solar system. To illustrate this point visually,
the producers have chosen footage of young, scantily-clad women throwing
Frisbees. There are a couple of other instances of bikini shots scattered here
and there, though of course, it's all in the interests of science. The
show's producers must have been especially thrilled to find an astronomer
(interviewed in the "Alien Planets" episode) who's also a
purple-haired leather-skirt-wearing belly dancer. Also, the first season in
particular tends to go overboard with the threats to life on Earth as we know
it. Every other episode, it seems, involves an asteroid or comet or meteor or
supernova or some such item striking the Earth, or passing by the Earth, or even
just coming near the Earth. Luckily this only occurs in the first few episodes,
and is all but gone by the second season. Despite its occasional lapses, The
Universe is a solid series that astronomy buffs should have in their
collections.

The other series are also good, if not quite as dazzling. The Planets
was a co-production between the BBC and A&E back in 1999. In contrast to the
snappy and flashy The Universe, The Planets is more sober,
thoughtful, and, ironically enough, historically detailed. That also makes it
considerably less accessible. The shows are denser and more talk-heavy, and
require much more concentration. Also, they're not organized in easy-to-digest
episodes like The Universe is. Only two episodes, "Giants"
(about the four outer gas giant planets) and "Moon," take a topic and
stick to it all the way through. The rest of the episodes meander and weave
through various topics, starting in one place and ending up in another that may
not seem to have a direct connection. It's not a bad series, and it actually
fills in some of the holes that the other show leaves, making it a perfect
companion piece. Viewers should be aware, though, that it's a show that might be
harder to follow than The Universe.

As for How the Earth Was Made, it's also a pretty good show.
Sometimes it falls victim to the History curse of sensationalism, especially in
its later minutes, but overall it's an immensely absorbing program about the
forming and growth of the Earth. It has some fascinating revelations about what
pre-life Earth was like, and the sections on the first evolutions of life are
also worth watching. It doesn't exactly fit the astronomical bent of the other
two programs, but it's good enough on its own terms that you won't quibble
much.

The technical aspects for all three shows are also generally acceptable.
Since The Planets is the oldest of the shows collected here, the transfer
isn't quite as sharp as the others. Sometimes it seems murky and grainy, and the
computer effects are a bit less impressive. The others, on the other hand, are
more recent and look and sound stunningly crisp, with only a few moments of
artefacting here and there. All the stereo 2.0 mixes are good, although lacking
some oomph. All the extras from the original releases have been included (except
for The Planets, which didn't have any). The Universe Season One
set comes with "Beyond the Big Bang," a 90-minute special on the
history of astronomy and physics. It's entertaining, though it does sometimes
lean a little much on cheesy re-enactments. The Season Two set comes with
"Backyard Astronomer," a collection of 20 three-minute instructional
vignettes that amateur astronomers can use to learn what exactly to look for in
the night sky. How the Earth Was Made includes 10 minutes of additional
scenes and outtakes, which add a bit more detail to some of the topics covered
in the show. It also includes a 50-minute special, "Inside the
Volcano," exploring how and why volcanoes form. It's not really
astronomical, but those whose interest in geology was piqued from its mention in
this and various other discs might find it illuminating.

So is this set worth it? Here, History has committed some inexplicable
blunders. First, they released this collection just weeks after the release of
The Universe's Season Two set. Presumably, if you've already bought that
one, you're probably enough of an astronomy buff to have bought the first season
as well. It seems a bit unfair to tempt fans to hold off on buying that one to
wait for this anthology instead. Far worse is that this box has a list price of
$199.95. If you were to add up the individual list prices (not including any
discounts) for all of the DVDs collected in this set, the total would only be
about $160. There are no new extras or additional content here, so it's hard to
understand where the extra $40 goes. Anyone who already has all of the DVDs
collected here needn't bother with this one, and everyone else will find it more
economical to get the sets piece by piece. If the list price for this massive
box were lower than the total for the individual parts, it would be worth it to
get this one. It has both Universe season sets and adds the very good
Planets series and the How the Earth Was Made disc as nice
bonuses. Until History lowers the price, though, it's not worth it. Though
The Universe: Collector's Set is a well-chosen collection that astronomy
buffs will enjoy, History is guilty of grossly overcharging for it. Pick this
collection up if you find it for less than $160. Otherwise, get the individual
pieces instead.